July 25-27, St. Louis
US (MO): InfoAg spotlights precision agriculture market developments
InfoAg is now held each year to reflect the ongoing, rapid pace at which agricultural technology is growing and being adopted.
From its early days being held in central Illinois, InfoAg has always strived to keep its finger on the pulse of precision agriculture. InfoAg 1995 was the first event held. The first few shows attracted hundreds of attendees and many exhibitors as the agricultural marketplace began to consider what emerging technologies could do to boost crop yields and profits for grower-customers, while maximizing fertilizer use and efficiency. In fact, after three annual InfoAg shows the event became biennial as marketers and suppliers came-and-went and the industry found its place in the overall agricultural world. In 2013 the event became annual again.
Fast-forward to InfoAg 2017, July 25-27, Union Station, St. Louis, MO, and you'll find the event has certainly grown up. Now held each year — to reflect the ongoing, rapid pace at which agricultural technology is growing and being adopted into use — the event has also expanded beyond its early large hotel venue, now taking up all the space available at the Union Station complex in the heart of St. Louis, MO, and attracting more than 1,400 attendees from all corners of the globe.
During the 2016 event, one of the highlights of the InfoAg Conference, according to attendees, was the PrecisionAg Plenary speaker, futurist Jack Uldrich. In his talk, Uldrich covered 10 technologies that he believes will change farming (and life in general) by 2020. Among these will be the move from 4G to 5G cellular networks, virtual reality headset usage, and advanced artificial intelligence mobile platforms beginning to show up.
“The world of ag and farming has already changed immensely,” he said. “It’s as weird as a red spade and you need to see that and recognize it and react to it.”
For the 2017, the keynote address will come from Steve Sonka, the Emeritus Chaired Professor of Agricultural Strategy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL. Sonka will talk about the coming of digital agriculture. The program and a complete list of quality speakers may be found at InfoAg.org/Program/At-A-Glance.
Another highlight of any InfoAg meeting is the PrecisionAg Luncheon, sponsored by Raven Industries and SST Software. This year’s luncheon will take place on Wednesday, July 26 from noon to 1:20 p.m.
With any InfoAg, one of the highlights involves stopping by the various booths to see the latest precision ag technology. To see a complete list visit InfoAg.org/Exhibit_Hall_2017. This year’s show will feature more than 100 exhibitors from across the agricultural landscape, featuring everything from “smart” devices and robotic machinery to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
For more information on InfoAg 2017 or to register to attend, visit InfoAg.org.